Translating Vietnamese Sentences Containing the Word Rồi ...

IJTE - ISSN: 2768-4563 International Journal of TESOL & Education Vol. 2; No. 3; 2022

CITATION | Le, H. H. L. (2022). Translating Vietnamese Sentences Containing the Word Rồi into English Related to English

Tenses. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 2(3), 284-307. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.222320

Translating Vietnamese Sentences Containing the Word Rồi into English Related to

English Tenses

Le Huu Hoa Loc1*

1 Hoa Sen University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam * Corresponding author’s email: [email protected] * https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6365-3314

https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.222320

Received: 13/05/2022 Revision: 28/06/2022 Accepted: 29/06/2022 Online: 30/06/2022

ABSTRACT

Keywords: tense,

semantically

equivalent translation,

the simple present

tense, the simple past

tense, the present

perfect tense, the past

perfect tense, the

simple future tense,

the near future tense

In Vietnamese1, rồi can help translators choose appropriate English

tenses to translate Vietnamese sentences into English. With this

study, the researcher wants to indicate the influence of rồi in four

Vietnamese works’2 sentences on their translators’ selection for

appropriate English tenses to have semantically equivalent

translations. The study refers to six tenses of simple present (a),

simple past (b), present perfect (c), past perfect (d), simple future

(e), and near future (f). These sentences were translated into English

with (a) if rồi denotes the emphasis on the reality of the event. (b),

(c), and (d) are preferred when rồi implies the event that happened

in the past. However, using (e) and (f) is not dependent upon the

occurrence of rồi because this word does need combination with

other words or phrases to denote the meaning of the future.

Therefore, understanding the influence of rồi in Vietnamese in

different contexts helps Vietnamese people learning English know

how to choose the appropriate English tenses when translating

Vietnamese sentences containing it into English.

Introduction

According to Phan, Nguyen & Nguyen (2022: 118), “most Vietnamese students who learn

English often make mistakes when learning Vietnamese-English translation because there are

many differences between Vietnamese and English”. One of them is about tenses because

“English has a very clear distinction between tenses while the tense distinction in Vietnamese

is not clear” Huynh (2012: 30). This results in the fact that translating Vietnamese sentences

1 Up to now, many linguists across the world have held different views about whether or not Vietnamese has a

system of tenses akin to the one in English. However, the study does not get into this endless argument.

2 The researcher used the corpora of four Vietnamese literature works, including Diary of a cricket (A), Paris

through closed eyes (B), Beloved Oxford (C), I see yellow flowers in the green grass (D), for his paper.


mailto:[email protected]

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6365-3314



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with modal verbs, including rồi, into English has posed a big challenge to Vietnamese people

learning this language. In fact, the occurrence of the word rồi in Vietnamese sentences might

make translators produce translations with different English tenses. Some suppose that this

word denotes an event that happened in the past, thereby choosing the past simple tense for

their English translation. For example, ‘Em đã hỏi chú Đàn rồi’ (in I see yellow flowers in the

green grass) was translated as ‘I asked him already’ (in the English version). Some reckon that

the word rồi simply puts the emphasis on the reality of utterances. The simple present tense was

used in this case. Take ‘Anh đói bụng lắm rồi’ (in Beloved Oxford) and its English translation

as ‘I am very hungry already’ as a good example. On the other hand, others choose the near

future tense in English to translate Vietnamese sentences with the word rồi. ‘Thôi sắp phải lên

máy bay rồi, em stop nhe’; (in Paris through closed eyes), and its English translation as ‘Well,

we are going to board the plane shortly, so I’ll stop here’ are an example. We can see that the

occurrence of the word rồi in the above examples helps translators produce corresponding

English translations with different tenses in this language. A question that needs raising here is

how we can select appropriate English tenses to translate Vietnamese sentences with the word

rồi. Trinh (2014: 29) emphasized the importance of the word rồi in applying translations with

Conventional conserved Implicature from English into Vietnamese. This was because the word

rồi “shows very clearly the orderly nature of action” (Trinh, 2014: 26). Also, Truong (2015: 1)

clarified the role of rồi in conveying the perfect meaning in English into Vietnamese through a

combination of Vietnamese grammar with the occurrence frequency of these words along with

other words, like ‘đã’ and ‘chưa’ in the literary work named "The Old Man and the Sea". These

are the motivation and inspiration for the researcher to conduct this study, which aims to clarify

the influences of the word rồi on translators' selection of English tenses, not just perfect tenses

when translating Vietnamese sentences containing it into English. Understanding the influence

of the word rồi in Vietnamese with different contexts helps Vietnamese people learning English

know how to decide on English tenses to have the semantically equivalent translation of

Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi into English.

Scope of the research and research progress/method

The scope of this study

This study does not enter into the endless argument over whether the Vietnamese has a system of tenses like

the one in English. In addition, the study clarifies the meanings of the word rồi without analyzing its syntactic

function and its equivalent words, phrases, or structures in English. Accordingly, the research delves into

clarifying the influence of the word rồi in the original Vietnamese sentences on translators' selection for the

appropriate English tense to have semantically equivalent translations of them into English. There are 06

English tenses that the study refers to, including

• The simple present tense

• The simple past tense

• The present perfect tense

• The past perfect tense

• The simple future tense

• The near future tense

https://i-jte.org Le Huu Hoa Loc Vol. 2; No. 3; 2022

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The progress/method of conducting this study

First, the researcher collects some Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi and the

corresponding English translations from the software CLC Parallel Corpus Tool3 mentioned in

Section 1 as the data to present the meanings of the word rồi. Introducing the English

translations only aims to give readers a brief overview of the two matters. Firstly, the meanings

of the word rồi and other words are involved (if any) in expressing their meanings in the

Vietnamese sentences. Secondly, the possibility of applying English tenses when translating the

original Vietnamese sentences contain the word rồi into English.

Next, the researcher has statistics on the frequency of occurrence of (i) Vietnamese and English

words related to translating Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi into English,

including the word rồi, (ii) the English tenses used due to the influence of the word rồi and

other words involved, in the literary works used as the researcher’s research materials. This

statistic helps the study draw objective conclusions about translators’ selection for the

appropriate English tenses to have semantically equivalent translations of Vietnamese sentences

containing the word rồi into English.

Finally, the work summarizes the meanings of the word rồi in Vietnamese and its influence on

the translators' decision to choose the English tense for semantically equivalent translation. On

the other hand, the conclusion also helps Vietnamese people who learn English apply suitable

translations in respect of tenses in English from Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi.

Literature review

In general, the study of translating a particular word in Vietnamese as a source language into

English as a target language has not been unfamiliar to researchers in linguistics. Although the

word rồi has appeared in studies in Vietnam, as far as the researcher is concerned, no researchers

have focused on clarifying the meanings of the word rồi when translating the Vietnamese

sentences containing it semantically equivalently into English in respect of English tenses.

Specifically, he selects the following three studies, which mentioned the word rồi and its

influences on translating utterances with conventional implicature and conveying the meaning

of perfect. Thereby drawing some relevant comments.

Rồi and translation with conversed conventional implicature

According to Trinh (2014: 26), the word rồi "shows very clearly the orderly nature of action",

so it is necessary to apply the translations with Conventional conserved Implicature from

English into Vietnamese. Through analyzing utterances occurring in some short stories written

by the writer Ernest Hemingway, the author emphasized the influence of the word rồi when

translating the original English sentences into Vietnamese. In this way, translators can have a

3 The researcher decided to use this software because of the variety and reliability of linguistic corpus collected by

Assoc. Prof. Dinh Dien, a well-known computing linguist and programmer in Vietnam.


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semantically equivalent translation from English into Vietnamese.

Rồi with the meaning of perfect

The meaning of perfect expressed by modal verbs in Vietnamese like đã, rồi, chưa has been an

appealing topic in English teaching and learning in Vietnam. The idea here is that the words in

question, when occurring alone or having combination with other words, can denote the

meaning of perfect, thereby choosing appropriate perfect tenses in English for translation.

Truong (2016: 1) showed that it is worth researching this matter “in order to help students

accurately translate the meaning of perfect form - a meaning expressed by modal verbs like đã,

rồi, chưa from Vietnamese into English” (Truong, 2016: 1). Previously, this author had clarified

the role of the word rồi in conveying the perfect meaning in English into Vietnamese through a

combination of Vietnamese grammar based on the English short story The Old Man and the Sea

by the writer Ernest Hemingway and the modern romantic novel Southern Lights. According to

Truong (2015: 20), the perfect English form is marked mainly in Vietnamese by the

combination of "đã + telic verb phrase, đã/(đã)+ telic verb phrase + rồi or chưa + telic verb

phrase". For this reason, when translating Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi into

English, translators need to pay attention to other words like đã and chưa to denote the meaning

of perfect in English.

The researcher agrees with the statement of Truong (2015: 1) that the combination of the group

of words, including đã, rồi, and chưa, helps translate the meaning of perfect form from

Vietnamese into English which many people know in the name of perfect tenses. As a result,

with this paper, the researcher continues to clarify the influence of the word rồi on the

translators’ decision to choose the English tenses, including perfect tenses, for semantically

equivalent translation in the four contemporary Vietnamese literary works mentioned at the

beginning of the paper. To do this, the researcher uses the Vietnamese Dictionary concerning

the meanings of the word rồi by Hoang et al. (2003: 832) as the main research basis.

The meanings of the word rồi in Vietnamese

According to Hoang et al. (2003: 832), the word rồi in Vietnamese has the following

meanings.

1. Indicate that the aforesaid thing which has been done belongs to the past time.

Example 1:

1a. Khi tôi mới mua cái điện thoại này thì nó (đã) bị hư mất rồi.

Suggested translation: 1a’. When I bought this cellular phone, it came damaged.

In the sentence called 1a, the word rồi shows that the broken phone is the problem that

happened before the time of speaking. Specifically, that phone was out of order khi tôi mới mua.

In addition, according to Diep (1996: 84-85), the adjuncts đã and rồi do not need to occur

together in the sentence called 1a; just one of them is sufficient to express the meaning of the

sentence because both of them belong to "the group of words implying the end”. If there is an


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occurrence of the word đã preceding the word rồi, "the word rồi has the same meaning as the

word xong".

In the suggested English translation called 1a’, the past tense is used to translate the words đã,

rồi semantically equivalently from the Vietnamese sentence called 1a into English. In

particular, the matter of the broken phone “happened in the past, ended, and the time is

known” (Mai & Nguyen, 2011: 8) – khi tôi mới mua.

1b. Này! Ba nhẩm nãy giờ thì con (đã) ăn năm cái bánh rồi đấy!

Suggested translation: 1b’. Hey! By my count, that’s five cakes you’ve had already.

1b’’. Hey! By my count, that’s five cakes you already had.

In the sentence called 1b, again, the event mentioned in the sentence had happened before the

time the father spoke. Specifically, the child ate five cakes. Similar to the sentence 1a, the

occurrence of the word đã is optional if the sentence has the word rồi to indicate that the event

has been done.

In the English-translated sentences called 1b' and 1b’’, the present perfect or the simple past

tense can be used for the fact that the child has already eaten five cakes. For British English

speakers, in such a case, the present perfect tense is often used. That the child ate five cakes

happened, but the specific time is unknown (unlike the time determined in the original sentence

called 1a). Besides, it is possible that when the father speaks, the child is eating the fifth

cake. “Usage of the present perfect creates a whole other slew of complications as its use may

coincide with the simple past or refer to incomplete states or actions” (Gavell, 2018: 4).

Meanwhile, "we may hear American English speakers using already with the past simple."4.

2. Indicate that the aforesaid thing is going to be done, finished in a short time.

Example 2:

2. Anh đến đây đúng lúc thật đấy, tàu sắp chạy rồi.

Suggested translation: 2’. You got here in the nick of time, the train’s just leaving.

2’’. You got here in the nick of time, the train’s going to leave.

In the sentence called 2, the presence of the modal verb5 sắp is required; otherwise, this sentence

will show an event that happened in the past (the train ran). In Vietnamese, the combination of

the word sắp preceding "the verb phrase of completion ("aspect")"6 rồi denotes the event that

will be finished soon in the future.

For this reason, in the English-translated sentences called 2’ and 2’’, the near future tense will

be preferred instead of the simple future tense. Moreover, there are many ways to denote the

near-future tense in English. We can use the present continuous tense because according to

4 According to the Cambridge dictionary at https://dictionary.cambridge.org/vi/grammar/british-grammar/already

5 This term was used by Cao (2005: 43).


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Thomson & Martinet (1975: 53), “planned future actions can be expressed by the present

continuous tense with a time expression" and "the present continuous is mainly used for very

definite arrangements in the near future" (the sentence 2’) or be + going to (the sentence 2’’).

3. Indicate that what is about to be said will happen in the near future.

Example 3:

3a. Tốt hơn anh kể cho cô ta nghe vì sớm muộn (gì) rồi cô ta cũng biết mà.

Suggested translation: 3a’. You had better tell her because she’ll find out sooner or later.

In the sentence called 3a, the word rồi accompanies the phrase sớm muộn (gì) to show that the

event is likely to happen in the near future without a specific time like that in the sentences

called 2a, 2b. Sometimes in Vietnamese, we can see the sentence called 3a in the case such as

“…. vì rồi sớm muộn (gì) cô ta cũng biết mà”. Although the position of the word rồi can change,

its meaning concerning indicating a high probability of the event does not change.

In the suggested English translation called 3a', the simple future tense used in the sentence is

more suitable than the near future tense. As mentioned above, the event in this sentence only

has a high probability of happening without absolute certainty, so it is impossible to use the

near future tense to indicate that the event is about to happen at an almost determined time.

However, to keep the meaning of the phrase sớm muộn (gì), we need to use the idiom sooner

or later in English.

3b. Nhìn thoáng qua thì tôi thấy thuế rồi sẽ tăng lên thôi.

Suggested translation: 3b’. I suppose at a glance, and taxes are going to go up.

In sentence 3b, the combination of the word rồi and the modal verb sẽ indicates the event is

more likely to happen and complete soon without speaking. If the speaker is sure, they only

need to use the word sẽ in the sentence called 3b. The occurrence of the word rồi is a way to

confirm that the tax increase will happen soon, but the speaker does not know the time exactly.

It also helps the speaker emphasize that the event is highly likely to happen after the glance.

This conclusion can be made because of the speaker's experience and knowledge.

On the contrary to the sentence called 3a', in the suggested English translation called 3b', the

near future tense in English needs to be used to translate the meaning from the original sentence

called 3b. This is because, with the occurrence of the phrase rồi sẽ in the sentence called 3b,

the speaker cannot determine the exact time, so we can use "the going to form with or without

a time expression" (Thomson & Martinet, 1975: 53). Also, the phrase rồi sẽ still indicates a

high probability that the event will happen soon as an inevitable consequence.

4. Indicate the passed time, rồi is often used as a word of conversational language after

some words or phrases of time.


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Example 4:

4. Họ báo chúng tôi biết là hàng (đã) được gửi đi tuần rồi thì phải.

Suggested translation:

4’. They informed us that the goods had been dispatched last week/a week ago.

4’’. They inform us that the goods were dispatched last week/a week ago.

In the sentence called 4, the occurrence of the word rồi is required. Otherwise, the

word tuần becomes indeterminate. However, the word tuần can be omitted if the speaker does

not intend to emphasize the time when hàng (đã) được gửi đi. Besides, in the sentence called

4, the word đã is optional because the event in question happened in the past. In the suggested

English translations called 4 and 4’’, we can use the simple past or past perfect tense for the fact

that hàng đã được gửi đi. However, which tense is used depends on the preceding part of the

sentence (họ thông báo chúng tôi). If the simple past tense is used for this part, the past perfect

needs to be used for the later one to show that the event in question happened before another

event in the past (Mai & Nguyen, 2011: 9) (hàng (đã) được gửi đi trước khi họ (đã) thông báo

chúng tôi). If the present simple tense is used for the former part, the past simple tense the latter

only needs using for the latter one (họ thông báo chúng tôi là rằng hàng (đã) được gửi

đi). Besides, the phrase tuần rồi in the sentence called 4 is equivalent to English as last

week or a week ago.

5. Indicate an emphasis on what is considered definitely affirmable.

Example 5:

5a. Nhanh lên đi, tụi mình muộn rồi đấy!

Suggested translation: 5a'. Come on, shake a leg; we're late already!

5b. Phải rồi, chỉ có điều là ông đang đi ngược hướng.

Suggested translation: 5b’. Alright, / Yes, it is, only you’re going in the opposite direction.

5c. Đèn (đã) sáng rồi.

Suggested translation: 5c’. The light is on.

In the sentences called 5a, 5b, and 5c, the word rồi is placed at the end of a clause or sentence

is used to emphasize the reality of the given event.

In the sentence called 5a, the word rồi is used in Vietnamese to urge the listener to hurry up. In

the English suggested translation called 5a’, the simple present tense is used in this context with

the occurrence of the word already "at the end of the sentence for more emphasis or to show

greater surprise. This is especially common in informal speech." 6. The speaker puts an

emphasis on the fact that the hearer should have been punctual.

6 According to Cambridge dictionary at https://dictionary.cambridge.org/vi/grammar/british-grammar/already


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In the sentence called 5b, in addition to the word phải, the word rồi can also follow some words

like được, đúng, ừ to indicate agreement with the event in question. With the suggested

translation called 5b’, English often uses some words like all right, okay, yes to give equivalent

meaning to phrases like phải rồi, đúng rồi, được rồi, ừ rồi.

In the sentence called 5c, the word rồi helps express the state of things or phenomena which is

changing to reach a new state, "end the beginning phase" (Diep, 1996: 84).

5d. Theo hồ sơ ghi lại thì anh (đã) vào tù sáu lần rồi.

Suggested translation: 5d’. You've been in prison six times, according to our records.

The word rồi, in combination with the word đã (not required), helps both denote the past event

and emphasize the event mentioned. Specifically, that anh (đã) vào tù sáu lần becomes more

persuasive by the word rồi shortly after.

In the English suggested translation called 7d’, with the repetition of the fact that anh (đã) vào

tù sáu lần, so the present perfect tense is used which “while referring to past, includes a

connection to the present” (Kolln & Funk, 2012: 74). Specifically, the man has been in prison

in the past, and up to the present, this has happened six times.

6. Indicate a sequence of time at which what is about to be raised occurs shortly after what

has just been mentioned. “With the word rồi, people are about to hear the next event.” (Cao,

2003: 67).

Example 6:

6a. Chúng tôi mạnh ai nấy xem vở kịch rồi sau đó trao đổi ý kiến với nhau.

Tạm dịch: 6a’. We had seen the play separately and then we compared notes afterwards.

6a’’. We had seen the play separately before we compared notes afterwards.

6a’’’. We see the play separately and then we’ll compare notes afterwards.

6a’’’’. We will see the play separately before we compare notes afterwards.

6b. Anh lái trước đi rồi tụi mình (sẽ) đổi tài cho nhau.

6c. Anh đi qua hai dãy nhà rồi quẹo phải là (sẽ) đến.

Tạm dịch: 6b’. You drive first and then we'll switch around.

6c’. You go two blocks, then turn right and you’ll reach it.

In the above examples, the researcher sees that choosing which English tense to translate

Vietnamese sentences does not depend on the word rồi. In these sentences, the word rồi only

helps the events in the sentence follow a sequential order. Grammatically, the word rồi in these

sentences resembles conjunction, which is out of the scope of the study.


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7. Indicate a kind of sequential relationship wherein what has just been mentioned is likely

to lead to what is about to be said.

Example 7:

7a. Anh phải xin phép cô ta rồi mới được làm.

Tạm dịch: 7a’. You’ll have to get her permission before you do that.

7b. Gắng học đi rồi anh sẽ đỗ.

Tạm dịch: 7b’. Study hard and you will pass your examinations.

Similar to the meaning mentioned in section 3.2.6, the study does not analyze this meaning of

the word rồi, because in this case, it acts as a conjunction in the sentence.

Table 1. Summarizing the meanings of the word “rồi” in Vietnamese.

Meanings (+ symbols

marked in the study)

Words / phrases in Vietnamese can

accompany the word rồi to help us

know when an event happens

Notice

1. Indicate that the aforesaid thing

which has been done belongs to the

past time. (M1)

a. đã … rồi

b. đã từng … rồi

c. từng … rồi

d. vừa … rồi

Used for the

study of using

English tenses

for translating

Vietnamese

sentences

containing the

word rồi into

English.

2. Indicate that the aforesaid thing is

going to be done, finished in a short

time. (M2)

a. sắp … rồi

b. gần (đến) … rồi

3. Indicate that what is about to be said

will happen in the near future. (M3)

a. sớm muộn (gì) … rồi

b. rồi sẽ ….

c. rồi … sẽ …

d. rồi đây …

e. mấy/vài/một/hai/… +

ngày/tuần/tháng/năm/… + nữa … rồi

f. mấy/vài/một/hai/… +

ngày/tuần/tháng/năm/… vừa rồi

4. Indicate the passed time, the word

rồi is often used as a word of

conversational language after some

words or phrases of time. (M4)

[(mấy/bao/…) + lâu/

tuần/tháng/năm/mùa/

ngày] … rồi

5. Indicate an emphasis on what is

considered definitely affirmable. (M5)

a. lại …. (nữa) rồi

b. chắc (hẳn) … rồi

6. Indicate a sequence of time at which

what is about to be raised occurs

shortly after what has just been

mentioned.

NOT used for

the study of

English tenses

for translating

Vietnamese

sentences

containing the

word rồi into

English.

7. Indicate a kind of sequential

relationship wherein what has just

been mentioned is likely to lead to

what is about to be said.


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Research Questions

This study aims to answer the two questions below:

1. How are the influences that the word rồi puts on translators’ selection for appropriate

English tenses when translating the Vietnamese sentences containing it into English?

2. Is there notice that Vietnamese people learning English need to take when choosing English

tenses when translating the Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi into English?

Results/Findings and discussion

Table 2. The number of the word rồi found in the corpus of the study.

Works The number of

the word rồi

The number of the word rồi

used for the study7 Proportion

A 172 23 13.4%

B 257 124 48.2%

C 464 170 36.6%

D 235 91 38.7%

The simple present tense

Table 3. Some typical examples of the simple present tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences

containing the word rồi into English in the corpus.

Works Vietnamese sentences English translation

A

- Chỗ này đích rồi! (M5) - Here it is!

Tôi ngắt lời:

- Thôi anh hiểu bụng chú rồi. (M5)

"Stop it!" I interrupted him. "I understand

what you mean."

Mới có cậu ễnh ương căng mép, phình bụng

chỉ nói một câu bình thường cũng vang tai

cả xung quanh rồi. (M5)

Just one bullfrog trying to put across his

opinion is enough to make your ears ring.

B

- Cô cứ như thế đã đẹp rồi! (M5) “You look gorgeous already!”

Chín giờ sáng rồi! (M5) “It’s nine o’clock in the morning already!”

– Cô gái đỏ mặt kêu lên – Em biết mình nhà

quê rồi! (M5)

She cried out as her face turned red. “I

already know I’m a hick!”.

C

Chỉ mới mùa thu thôi đó mà đã mặc cả chục

lớp áo rồi! (M5)

“It is only autumn now, but you are

already wearing ten layers of clothes!”

Em biết phương pháp học rồi, vậy em phải

tự bơi một mình chứ! (M5)

“You know the method of studying

already, so you must swim by yourself!”

- Fernando phì cười- Em bệnh nặng quá

rồi! (M5)

Fernando burst out laughing. “You are

seriously sick already!”

D

“Thế là công chúa chọn mày rồi.” (M5) “So the Princess chooses you then.”

“Tao định làm gì thì mày cũng biết rồi đó.

(M5)

“What I’m gonna do, you know already.”

7 The study only used the Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi in the corpus with the meanings called M1,

M2, M3, M4, and M5 in Table 1. These meanings have an influence on choosing the appropriate tenses in English

for translating semantically equivalent Vietnamese sentences into English.


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The researcher realizes that the simple present tense was used to translate the Vietnamese

sentences containing the word rồi mainly with the meaning of the word rồi called M5 in Table

1. Of the 174 occurrences of the word rồi that are suitable for the objectives of the study and

statistically collected from the corpus, most of them appear at the end of the original Vietnamese

sentences (…rồi.) to indicate the emphasis on the fact considered affirmable. When translated

into English, the word already is preferred to be used in an English sentence (…already…) or

at the end of it (…already.) with 62 occurrences. It is appropriate to choose the simple present

tense to produce a translation in these cases. Since the simple present tense in English is used

to “expresses a general truth” (Seaton & Mew, 2007: 80), the fact that the speaker considers

definitively affirmable. Therefore, the combination of đã and rồi (…đã … rồi.) in the original

Vietnamese sentences does not affect the use of the simple present tense when producing

translation.

Table 4. The use frequency of the simple present tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to

help us know when events happen.

Works

The use frequency of the simple

present tense in English

Words / phrases in Vietnamese can accompany

the word rồi to help us know when an event

happens – the frequency of use

(number of uses / proportion)

Number of uses Proportion Vietnamese English

A 8 34.7% …rồi. / …rồi…

– (8 / 100%)

B 44 35.5%

…rồi. / …rồi…

– (44 / 100%)

…already.

/ …already … – (26 /

37.8%)

C 82 48.3%


– (82 / 100%)

…already.

/ …already … – (31 /

59.1%)

D 40 44% …rồi. / …rồi…

– (40 / 100%)

…already./ …already …

/ …then. – (5 / 12.5%)

The simple past tense

Table 5. Some typical examples of the simple past tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences



A

Ròng rã mấy mùa rồi, không nhớ mà cũng

không nghe được một tin tức gì về Trũi.

(M4)

Many months passed. I was still without

news of Mole-cricket.

Anh ơi Từ khi anh em ta xa nhau. Chắc anh

tưởng em chết rồi chứ còn đâu ngày nay.

(M1)

"Brother, we have been separated for a

long time. Perhaps you thought I was

dead.”

- Chúng tôi gặp nhau tháng trước ở Hong

Kong rồi – Mai vẫn còn kinh ngạc – Xin

phép tôi phải đi! (M1)

“We already met each other last month in

Hongkong.”

Đáng giận nhất là em đang định cua một

thằng Tây trẻ, nhưng không ngờ thằng nay

Worse, I am so angry, mostly because she

was paying attention to a young Western


295

B lại quen con Mai trước đó rồi. (M1) guy that I wanted to flirt with and to

control later on, but I doubt that this guy

already knew Mai before then.

Các bậc phụ huynh bắt đầu hối “bé Mai”

vào check – in vì sát giờ lắm rồi, hành lý lại

nhiều. (M5)

All of her relatives started to hasten their

"baby Mai" into the check-in area – for it

was very nearly time already, and there

was a lot of baggage.

C

Lúc anh đến khu học xá thì đã mười giờ tối

rồi. (M1)

“When I went to your dormitory it was

already ten o’clock at night.”

- Nhưng anh đã biết trước rồi phải không?

(M1)

“However, you knew before already

right?”

Tốt hơn hết là tắt phứt cho rồi, khỏi phải

dài dòng giải thích lung tung. (M5)

“It was much better to definitely turn it off

then, and escape having to lengthily

explain in confusion.”

D

“Em đã hỏi chú Đàn rồi.” (M1) “I asked him already.”

“Mình chép xong rồi.” (M1) “I already copied.”

The simple past tense is preferred to translate the Vietnamese sentences containing the

word rồi with its meaning called M1 in Table 1. Specifically, there are 76 times the translators

used this tense to translate into English for the 76 corresponding Vietnamese sentences. In the

Vietnamese sentences in these cases, the combination of the word đã with the

word rồi (…đã…rồi.) is counted up to 18/76 occurrences. According to Le (2020: 152), the

structure of “(đã) + noun phrase of time + rồi is an adverb in Vietnamese sentences to denote a

period passing before the time of speech”. Evidence suggests that to denote a past event, the

word rồi can only appear alone (…rồi.) or the time when the event happened is shown by the

words or phrases of time (e.g. mấy mùa rồi, trước đó rồi, tháng trước…rồi) without the

occurrence of the word đã. The occurrence of đã only helps to emphasize “the relation of time

to the process" and “the realism or unreality of actions, states, and properties in relation to

time" (Diep & Hoang, 1996: 125). Hence, in English, the translators use the simple past tense

to translate the sentences containing the word rồi in these cases. The word already is still used,

albeit insignificantly, with 22/76 occurrences in English sentences (…already…) or at the end

of them (…already.). In addition, the researcher also counts the insignificant number of

occurrences of the word rồi with its meanings called M4 and M5 in Table 1. With the meaning

called M4, the word rồi accompanied the words or phrases of the past time mentioned above.

With the meaning called M5, the word rồi is to emphasize the event in question. This fact is

akin to the use of the present perfect tense in English analyzed below.


296

Table 6. The use frequency of the simple past tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to help

us know when events happen.

Works

The use frequency of the

simple past tense in English



happens – the frequency of use (number of uses /

proportion)

Number of uses Proportion Tiếng Việt Number of uses

A 5 21.7%

mấy mùa rồi

– (1 / 20%)

many months passed

– (1 / 20%)

…đã…rồi… – (1 / 20%)

…rồi. – (3 / 60%)

B 17 13.71%


– (17 / 100%)

…already. / …already …

(6 / 35.3%)

C 26 15.3%

…đã…rồi.

– (5 / 19.2%)


(9 / 34.6%)


– (21% / 80.8%)

D 28 30.7%

…đã…rồi. – (12 / 42.9%)

…rồi. – (16 / 57.1%)


- (7 / 25%)

The present perfect tense

Similar to the simple past tense, the present perfect tense is used to translate into English for

the 90 Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi. In these cases, the word rồi denotes the

meaning called M1 in Table 1. Of these, although there are 25 times the

words đã and rồi or từng and rồi combined (…đã/từng…rồi.), the researcher again realizes

that the word rồi can appear alone. The question is why the translators chose the present perfect

tense instead of the simple past one to translate these 90 Vietnamese sentences into English.

According to Truong (2014: 127), “The perfect8 can be used to describe an event that started

in the past and continues up to the period of utterance, or an event that has already happened

in the past but its result relates to the present. In addition, it can also be used to describe events

that have just happened shortly before the period of utterance. These meanings are categorized

into four different types of the English perfect “perfect of result, perfect of experience, perfect

of persistent situation, and perfect of recent past” (Comrie, 1976: 56-61).

8 The term perfect is reused by the author from The English-Vietnamese/Vietnamese-English Dictionary of Terms

of Contrastive Linguistics (2005) by Cao Xuan Hao and Hoang Dung.


297

Table 7. Some typical examples of the present perfect tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences



A

Trũi tiếp:

- Anh mắng thì em cũng nói. Em tuyệt

vọng rồi,… (M5)

"I'm going to say it anymore," he said. "I

haven't a bit of hope left…”

B

Mùa đông khủng khiếp đã đến rồi. (M5) "The cold has set in.”

- Tôi đến rồi, đi họp – Mai thở dài – Giá

lúc đó tôi quen anh! (M1)

"I have been there already. I went to a

meeting," Mai said with a sigh. "I wish I

could have known you already at that time!"

“Các đồng nghiệp Marketing trong vùng

châu Á đều sướng hơn mình, em dò hỏi

rồi.” (M1)

“All the marketing co-workers in the Asian

district are more satisfied than me, for I have

already made inquiries about that.”

Daniel tươi cười dù có phần bối rối –

“Gần ba năm rồi từ ngày anh gặp em lần

đầu ... (M4)”

Daniel said, having a dazzling smile, though

he was somewhat confused. “It’s been

almost three years since I met you for the

first time.”

C

“Anh bôi kem lên bàn chải cho em rồi

đó!” (M1)

“I have already put toothpaste on your brush

for you!”

- Hai – Kim lạnh lùng trả lời – Đã nộp

bài một môn rồi, còn môn “Nhân sự”

đang làm, đầu tuần sau hết hạn. (M1)

“Two,” Kim answered coldly. “I have

already delivered one subject. I am currently

doing the ‘Human Affairs’ subject. I will be

finished by the first of next week.”

David bắt chuyện: - Em từng thăm bao

nhiêu thành phố ở Anh rồi? (M1)

David seized the opportunity to say, “How

many English cities have you visited

already?”

“Hẳn Fernando tưởng tôi vẫn còn mê anh

ta lắm - Vi Vi nhún vai cười - Cho tôi

nhắn lại, hết từ lâu rồi! (M4)

"Certainly Fernando thought I was still

madly in love with him," Vi Vi said,

shrugging her shoulders and smiling, "Send

him my message. It has been over already

for a long time!"

D

Tôi đá vào chân nó, giọng hiểu biết:

- Tao nghĩ thầy biết lâu rồi. (M4)

I kick my leg into his leg, as if knowing, “I

think that he has known for a long time

already.”

Trái với mẹ tôi, ba tôi đứng ở đầu

giường, quắc mắt nhìn thằng Tường,

giận dữ:

- Mày mà không nằm bẹp thế này, tao

đã đập thêm cho mày mấy gậy rồi!

(M5)

Opposite my mom, my dad stands at the foot

of the bed, an angry scowl on his face when

seeing Tường.

- "You can't be immobilized just from this,

how many times have I beaten you with the

cane already!".

We see this clearly in the following sentences.

• “Gần ba năm rồi từ ngày anh gặp em lần đầu ...” - perfect of persistent situation: from

the past to the time of utterance is nearly three years, the word rồi helps to show that the

meeting was in the past and helps to emphasize the reality of the three-year period;

• “Em từng thăm bao nhiêu thành phố ở Anh rồi?” - perfect of experience: the word rồi

implies that the matter that David is asking, empirically, to know how many places


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where Kim has visited in England since she started his studies at Oxford University

happened before David asked;

• “Anh mắng thì em cũng nói. Em tuyệt vọng rồi.” - perfect of result: De True expressed

his desperation as a negative outcome of his and De Men's dire situation before the time

of this statement. The word rồi is used to emphasize this fact which has just happened.

Therefore, choosing the present perfect tense to translate the Vietnamese sentences in these

cases into English is correct. There are 49 occurrences of the word already in these English

sentences.

Table 8. The use frequency of the present perfect tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to


Works

The use frequency of the present

perfect tense in English






A 2 8.7% …đã…rồi. – ( 1 / 50%)

…rồi. – (1 / 50%)

B 36 29.03%

…đã…rồi.

– ( 11 / 30.5%)

…already.

/ …already … (22 /

61.1%)


– (25 / 69.5%)

C 38 22.4%

…đã…rồi /…từng…rồi

– ( 8 / 21.1%)

…already.

/ …already … (27 /

71.1%)

…rồi. / …lâu rồi.

– (30 / 78.9%)

D 14 15.4% …đã…rồi – (5 / 35.7%)

…rồi./…lâu rồi.–(9/ 64.3%)

The past perfect tense

Table 9. Some typical examples of the past perfect tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences



A

Một bên thì bảo mày vu oan cho ông.

(Vì anh tôi đã giũ sạch ngay bãi phân

chim trên lưng rồi). (M1)

...while Tailorbird was mad at what he thought was a

false accusation. (As a matter of fact, my brother had

already cleaned the droppings off himself.)

Nhưng có điều đau đớn hơn cho tôi là

Trũi đã bị Châu Chấu Voi bắt làm tù

binh rồi. (M1)

..., and for me personally there was a piece of grievous

news: Mole-cricket had been taken prisoner.

B

Sophie đứng chờ Mai trước cửa phòng

vệ sinh như sợ cô tự tử mất rồi. (M1) Sophie was standing in front of the toilet waiting for

Mai as though she feared that Mai had already

committed suicide and was lost.

“…Anh bỏ em rồi.” (M1) “…You had abandoned me already.”

C Kim cười nắc nẻ nhận ra hồi nào đến

giờ mình đã “trả thù” rồi mà không

… Kim said, bursting into laughter and realizing that

when the time came, she had already 'paid revenge', but


299

biết - Vậy nhé, tối này em chờ anh ở

khu học xá. (M1)

didn't realize it. "So right, this evening I will wait for

you at my dormitory."

Đã lâu rồi anh không thèm tìm cách

liên lạc với Kim qua email hay điện

thoại gì nữa. (M4)

For a long time already, he hadn't wanted to look for a

way to communicate with Kim by email or telephone

any longer.

Thật ra hai người đã chờ đợi nhau quá

lâu rồi, giờ vắng nhau thêm vài tháng

nữa cùng không sao nếu điều này thực

sự cần thiết. (M4)

The two of them had really waited for each other for a

long time already, and being away from each other for

several more months wouldn’t be so bad if it was

actually necessary.

D Trước đó, con Nhi đã được ba nó dắt

vào rạp rồi. (M1)

She had already been once to see the show.

The past perfect tense in English is used 29 times in the researcher’s research corpus. This tense

belongs to the group of the English perfect "in correlation with the reference time in the

past" (Truong, 2014: 128). In the 29 original Vietnamese sentences, the occurrences of the

word rồi (…rồi./…rồi…) with 20/29 times or its combination with the

word đã/từng (…đã/từng…rồi.) with 09/29 times refer to the situation time in the past,

corresponding to its meanings called M1 and M4 in Table 1. The difference with the simple

past tense and the present perfect tense is that the event in question happened before another

event in the past (Mai & Nguyen, 2011: 9). Therefore, depending on the context of the original

Vietnamese sentence containing the word rồi, the translators choose the past perfect tense for

such cases. In English sentences translated from these sentences, the word already continues to

be used with 10 occurrences.

Table 10. The use frequency of the past perfect tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to


Works

The use frequency of the past

perfect tense in English






A 6 26.1%

…đã…rồi. – ( 2 /

33.3%) …rồi. – (4 /

66%)

…already…

– (1 / 16.7%)

B 6 4.82%

…đã…rồi. – ( 2 / 33.3%) …already./…already …

– (3 / 50%)


– (4 / 66.6%)

C 15 8.9%

…đã…rồi. / …từng…rồi.

– ( 5 / 33.3%)

…already. / …

already… – (6 / 40%)

… rồi. / …rồi…

– (10 / 66.7%)

D 2 2.2% … rồi. – (2 / 100%)


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The simple future tense

Table 11. Some typical examples of the simple future tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences



A

- Nhưng trước khi nhắm mắt, tôi khuyên

anh: ở đời mà có thói hung hăng bậy bạ, có

óc mà không biết nghĩ, sớm muộn rồi cũng

mang vạ vào mình đấy. M3)

“… But before leaving this world, I would

like to give you some advice: Don't be

such a foolish braggart. Your aggression

and arrogance will bring bad luck to you

someday."

B

Cuối cùng khi Mai sắp quăng luôn chiếc

laptop, Louis mở cửa thoát thân, trước khi

kịp sập cửa lại anh tru tréo: “Rồi cô sẽ hối

hận! (M3)

Finally, when Mai started to throw her

laptop, Louis opened the door to flee, but

before slamming the door shut he yelled,

“You will regret this later!...”

“Rồi anh sẽ thấy.” “… You will see them later.”

– Bà Christine khuyên chân thành – Rồi

cháu sẽ còn gặp nhiều chuyện không như ý.

(M3)

Misses Christine sincerely advised. “You

will face many experiences later that are

not like the way you think.”

Chắc vài tuần nữa cô sang Paris rồi. (M3) “…for she will go to Paris in just a couple

of weeks.”

C

Kim bật cười, làm ra vẻ vô tư: “Rồi David

sẽ cho bác một nàng dâu dễ thương!” (M3)

Kim burst out laughing, and appearing

unbiased said, “Then David will give you

a lovable daughter-in-law!”

D

- Mẹ con sắp được thả rồi. (M2) “Your mom will soon be released.”

- Con sắp ngồi dậy được rồi. (M2) “I’ll be able to sit up soon.”

The simple future tense is used to translate the 31 Vietnamese sentences containing the

word rồi with its meanings called M2 or M3 in Table 1. The number of sentences containing

the word rồi with the meaning called M3 is more dominant than the one called M2. Specifically,

with the meaning called M3, the word rồi usually needs to accompany the

word sẽ (…rồi…sẽ… / …rồi sẽ…) with 15 occurrences to denote the situation time in the

future. With the meaning called M2, the word rồi usually needs the presence of the

word sắp (…sắp…rồi…), (…sắp…rồi.) with 06 occurrences to denote that the event will be

finished in the blink of an eye. In the sentences translated into English, these two meanings are

expressed more clearly with the occurrence of the words or phrases such as …later (09

times), then will… (01 time), …soon… / …soon… (04 times), then… (02 times).

Thus, to use the simple future tense for translating the original Vietnamese sentence containing

the word rồi, the translators need the presence of other words such as sẽ, sắp, … They

accompany the word rồi to denote its meanings called M2 or M3 in Table 1. However, the

occurrence of the word rồi in these cases is not required. The translators can still translate the

original Vietnamese sentence into English with the simple future tense without taking the

word rồi into account. This is common when in the Vietnamese sentence there is "(an)

adjunct(s) of time in the future" (To, 2013: 10) as in the sentence “Chắc vài tuần nữa cô sang

Paris rồi”. Besides, according to To (2022: 143), “the Vietnamese language generally expresses

future meaning by a lexical means: (i) either a single modal verb like sẽ, định, tính, or sắp; (ii)


301

or a combination of two or more modal verbs like định sẽ, tính sẽ, dự tính sẽ, có thể sẽ, sẽ có

thể, or sẽ … được”. Therefore, the number of English sentences using the future simple tense

translated from the original Vietnamese sentences in the researcher’s corpus is not significant.

However, the occurrence of the word rồi helps to emphasize the event in question for its

possibility of happening in the future.

Table 12. The use frequency of the simple future tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to


Works

The use frequency of the

simple future tense in English






A 1 4.4% sớm muộn rồi

– ( 1 / 100%)

B 20 16.13%

…rồi…sẽ… / …rồi sẽ… -

(12 / 60%)

…later. – (9 / 45%)

…sắp…rồi…

- (2 / 10%)

C 7 4.2%

…rồi…sẽ… / …rồi sẽ… -

(3 / 42.3%)

…then will...

– (1 / 14.3%)

…sắp…rồi. – (1 / 14.3%) …soon…

– (1 / 14.3%)


– (3 / 42.3%)

…then... – (2 /

28.6%) …already – (1 /

14.3%)

D 3 3.3% …sắp…rồi. – (3 / 100%) …soon. / …soon…

– (3 / 100%)

The near future tense

Similar to the simple future tense, the near future tense is used in a limited way by the translators

when translating the Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi with its meaning called M2

in Table 1. Specifically, there are only 08 times the near future tense was used and 6/8 of those

have a combination of the word sắp and the word rồi (…sắp…rồi.). The influence of the

word rồi on the translator's choice of the near future tense to translate the original Vietnamese

sentences is almost non-existent. However, as mentioned above, the occurrence of the

word rồi helps to emphasize the possibility of an event happening in the near future.


302

Table 13. Some typical examples of the near future tense used to translate the Vietnamese sentences



A

Tôi nói lớn:

- Ấy chớ! cứu anh thì đã đành, nhưng đừng

vào bây giờ. Tường nhà tù chắc chắn lắm,

mà sắp đến buổi lão chim Trả đi kiếm ăn

về rồi. (M2)

"Wait!" I hastily cried out. "Don't enter

yet. It's about time for the Kingfisher to

return home."

Lần nào trở về, nghe tôi hỏi, mắt nó cũng

lấp lánh hy vọng:

- Chắc mẹ mình sắp được thả rồi. (M2)

Each time she comes back, her eyes are

twinkling with some hope when I ask her

about it. “My mom’s gonna be free

soon,…”

B

Thôi sắp phải lên máy bay rồi, em stop

nhe. (M2)

Well, we are going to board the plane

shortly, so I’ll stop here.

C

Fernando có vẻ rất mệt mỏi và buồn bã:

- Anh đến để tạm biệt em – Fernando

gượng cười – Ngày mai anh đi rồi. (M2)

Fernando, appearing very tired and

depressed, said, “I came to say so long to

you.” Fernando forced a smile,

“Tomorrow I am going already”.

“Thật ra Việt Nam đang là môi trường đầu

tư hấp dẫn- Fernando kéo Kim nằm xuống

gối đầu lên đùi mình- Thị trường cổ phiếu

sắp nóng lên rồi, em không chịu đọc báo

kinh tế gì hết!” (M2)

“Vietnam is really attractive for the

investment field.” Fernando said, while

pulling Kim to lay her head down on the

pillow on his lap. “The market shares are

going to get hot there soon, so you

wouldn’t want to read a newspaper about

the economics at all!”

D “Nhà mình sắp giàu rồi!” (M2) “Mom, we’re going to be rich!”

When translating these sentences into English, the translators use a variety of ways below to

express this meaning.

• “be about + infinitive” to claim that an event is "going to very soon" or "just going to"

(Swan, 1980: 3).

• “be going to…” to describe an event "with or without a time expression" (Thomson &

Martinet, 1975: 53) or even to make predictions about an event in the near future. “The

predictive meaning, especially the prediction based on present causes, can also be

expressed by be going to…” (To, 2013: 10). “Nhà mình sắp giàu rồi!” is a point in case.

• “be V_ing” is also used to “talk about things you have planned to do, or things that are

going to happen in the future.” (Seaton & Mew, 2007: 91). In such a case, however, “if

we want to use it with a future connotation, it is almost imperative that a sign of future

time is present” (To, 2013: 9) “Ngày mai anh đi rồi.” is a point in case.


303

Table 14. The use frequency of the near future tense & words/phrases accompanying the word rồi to


Works

The use frequency of the near

future tense in English






A

1

4.4%

…sắp…rồi. – ( 1 / 100%) be + about to

– (1 / 100%)

B

1

0.81%

…sắp…rồi.– ( 1 / 100%) be + going to

– (1 / 100%)

C

2

1.2%

…sắp…rồi.– ( 1 / 50%) be + going to

– (1 / 50%)

…rồi. – (1 / 50%)

be + V_ing

– (1 / 50%)

D

4

4.4%

…sắp…rồi. – (3 / 75%)

be + going to / be +

about to – (3 / 75%)

…đã…rồi. – (1 / 25%)

be + about to

– (1 / 25%)

Table 15. The summary of the possibility of translating Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi

into English with the appropriate English tenses.

Works

The use frequency of English tenses

Simple

present

Simple past Present

perfect

Past

perfect

Simple

future

Near

future

A 34.7% 21.7% 8.7% 26.1% 4.4% 4.4%

B 35.5% 13.71% 29.03% 4.82% 16.13% 0.81%

C 48.3% 15.3% 22.4% 8.9% 4.2% 1.2%

D 44% 30.7% 15.4% 2.2% 3.3% 4.4%

Discussion

The study addresses the word rồi to clarify its influence on translators’ selection on choosing

the English tenses for translating Vietnamese sentences containing it into English. Based on the

meanings of the word rồi in Vietnamese and the occurrence of some other words or phrases

involved, the translators should take them into account before deciding what English tense is

appropriate to translate the Vietnamese sentences containing them into English semantically

equivalently. Specifically, the researcher has findings which aim at clarifying this matter and

helping Vietnamese learners studying English find it easy to translate in similar cases.

o The simple present tense is usually used to translate Vietnamese sentences containing the

word rồi into English if the word rồi occurring in them denotes the meaning of

emphasizing the reality of the event mentioned. In this case, the word rồi often appears at

the end of the original Vietnamese sentences (…rồi.) to indicate the emphasis on the fact

considered affirmable. When translated into English, the word already is preferred to be


304

used in an English sentence (…already…) or at the end of it (…already.). The combination

of đã and rồi (…đã … rồi.) in the original Vietnamese sentences does not affect the use of

the simple present tense when producing translation.

o The simple past tense, present perfect, and past perfect tense are preferred when the

word rồi implies that the event mentioned in the sentence happened in the past. The

combination of the words đã/từng with the word rồi (…đã/từng…rồi.) is quite popular in

the Vietnamese sentences in these cases. The word rồi can even appear alone.

Consequently, the word already is still used, albeit insignificantly to translate them into

English. The main difference between the use of the present perfect and the past perfect

tense is that while the former requires the word rồi to indicate the connection of the event

in question with a result at present, the latter is used when that event happened before

another time or action in the past.

o Evidence suggests that the word rồi exerts no effects on choosing the simple future or

near future tense when translators translate Vietnamese sentences containing it into

English. This is because in the Vietnamese sentence there is “(an) adjunct(s) of time in the

future” (To, 2013: 10). The word rồi usually needs to accompany the word sẽ (…rồi…sẽ…

/ …rồi sẽ… / …sắp…rồi… / …sắp…rồi.) to denote the situation time in the future. The

translators need the presence of the other words in question (sẽ, sắp,…) to use the simple

future or near future tense in English. However, the occurrence of the word rồi helps to

emphasize the event in question for its possibility of happening in the future.

Researching words/phrases that affect translators’ selection on English tenses when translating

Vietnamese sentences into English has become a popular and interesting topic for years as it is

considered a challenge for language learners when there are differences of grammar between

their mother tongue, such as Vietnamese, and foreign language, English as a case in point.

“Translators and scholars are on the way to pursue better and more complete methods as well

as criteria systems for translation” (Tran, 2022: 1). Thereby resulting in the presence of various

research addressing this matter. However, the reality has not applied clearly and completely to

the word rồi in consideration of its influences on translators’ selection on appropriate English

tenses to translate the Vietnamese sentences containing it into English.

Truong (2015) used the literary work named ‘The Old Man and the Sea’ by Ernest Hemingway

and its Vietnamese translation by Le Huy Bac to have statistics on the use frequency of the

meaning of perfect. The author proved that when translating English sentences with this

meaning into Vietnamese, the translator used the combination of words, including đã, rồi, and

chưa. However, Truong (2015) only clarified the influence of the word rồi in conveying the

meaning of perfect in Vietnamese when Vietnamese translators translate English sentences into

Vietnamese. Also, Truong (2015) focused on the word rồi in combination with other

words/phrases, which put the emphasis on syntactic features in Vietnamese. Trinh (2014)

mentioned the role of the word rồi in translating utterances with conversed conventional

implicature. The reason is that rồi “shows very clearly the orderly nature of action” (Trinh,

2014:26), so it is necessary to apply the translations with conserved Conventional Implicature


305

from English into Vietnamese. Either way, Trinh (2014) did not have further analysis of the

word rồi. Both Truong (2015) and Trinh (2014) used the different method from that of this

study when they considered English as the source language and Vietnamese as the target

language for their studies.

Compared to these previous studies, this study has several differences. Initially, the researcher

of this study tried to clarify the influences of the word rồi on translators’ selection on six English

tenses when translating Vietnamese sentences into English, not just the perfect tenses. Next,

this study used Vietnamese as the source language with the four literary works written by

Vietnamese authors and English as the target language with the translations of the works in

question. Finally, the two previous studies, to a certain extent, supported this research's findings

as no conflict appeared.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the occurrence of the word rồi exerts a significant influence on translators’

selection on choosing the appropriate English tenses for translating Vietnamese sentences

containing it into English. These sentences are usually translated into English with the simple

present tense if the word rồi occurring in them denotes the meaning of emphasizing the reality

of the event mentioned. Meanwhile, the simple past, present perfect, and past perfect tense are

preferred when the word rồi implies that the event mentioned in the sentence happened in the

past. The main difference between the use of the present perfect and the past perfect tense is

that while the former requires the word rồi to indicate the connection of the event in question

with a result at present, the latter is used when that event happened before another time or action

in the past. However, that using the simple future and near future tense is not dependent upon

the occurrence of the word rồi because this word does need the combination with other words

or phrases to denote the meaning of future. Therefore, understanding the influence of the

word rồi in Vietnamese in different contexts helps Vietnamese people learning English know

how to choose the appropriate English tenses to have the semantically equivalent translation of

Vietnamese sentences containing the word rồi into English.

Acknowledgments

The researcher would like to give sincere thanks to Assoc. Prof. To Minh Thanh and Dr. Huynh

Van Tai. He actually highly appreciates the fundamental knowledge of Contrastive Syntax and

Language, Culture & Society which they conveyed to their learners. They did broaden his mind

to many horizons in every session of language, which has an intimate connection between the

scope of his study and further ones in the future.

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Biodata

Le Huu Hoa Loc is currently a Master’s degree student at Hoa Sen University in the major of

English Language. He is working at Thien An English center as both an academic manager

and teacher. He has experience in teaching English for Vietnamese adults for nearly 8 years,

especially those who have difficulties in learning English for international English exams, such

as IELTS, TOEIC, and PET Preliminary. During their teaching career, hitherto, he has been

aware of his students’ problems in terms of absorbing, understanding and applying English

into the exams or real communication scenarios. One of the most fundamental causes is the

syntactic and semantical difference between English and their mother tongue, Vietnamese.

Understanding this, his research mainly focuses on contrastive English and Vietnamese to find

out the easiest way for them to learn English effectively.

https://vjol.info.vn/index.php/NNDS/article/view/16959/15150



https://sti.vista.gov.vn/file_DuLieu/dataTLKHCN/CTv75/2014/CTv75S92014023.pdf

https://repository.vnu.edu.vn/bitstream/VNU_123/67113/1/Trương%20Thị%20Anh%20Đào.pdf

https://repository.vnu.edu.vn/bitstream/VNU_123/67113/1/Trương%20Thị%20Anh%20Đào.pdf

http://nnkt.ueh.edu.vn/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/10.pdf

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